


The Folly of Assumptions

by TardisCrew



Category: Doctor Who
Genre: An adventure onboard, Angst with resolution, Doctor struggling to figure it out, F/M, Forced Bonding, Rose at risk
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-24
Updated: 2019-05-28
Packaged: 2020-01-31 09:09:54
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 15,598
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18588166
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TardisCrew/pseuds/TardisCrew
Summary: Safe in the vortex, the Doctor busy with repairs and Rose exploring the ship’s wondrous storage lockers, an ancient danger emerges from the lockers, threatening everything the Doctor holds dear.





	1. Chapter 1

They’d been drifting in the vortex for four days now because the TARDIS needed repair work that just couldn’t be put off any longer. With the Doctor focused on repairs, Rose was exploring the ship’s storage lockers to fight the boredom. He’d warned her many times that she must NOT fiddle with anything she found without checking with him first. His lectures were filled with dire warnings of potential consequences if ‘stuff’ got loose. She’d always take her log book with her noting the storage rooms she’d visited and anything of interest she’d found as well as any questions she had for the Doctor about what she’d found.

Because the TARDIS was always moving things around, Rose had to keep track of what rooms she’d already seen. Over the last four days she was gone all day, packing a lunch and a thermos of tea before she set out. She never knew what she might find in the storage rooms. Might be exotic stuff, spellbinding gizmos and gadgets, wonders of long lost planets or even an Egyptian pyramid. Exploring the storage rooms was more exciting than any Earth adventure or vacation she’d ever had. 

Every time they’d been holed up in the vortex and the Doctor was occupied she explored. Sometimes she’d coax the Doctor into explaining her most marvelous discoveries and they’d wile away the hours as he told the stories of his adventures and explained the curious things she’d found. He would protest her attempts to drag him to the storage rooms but he wasn’t fooling Rose. She knew he loved teaching and whenever she asked him questions about their travels he treated her education seriously and he did the same for her questions about the storage lockers. Rose Tyler loved exploring whether inside the TARDIS or out in the infinite universe, now become her neighborhood, thanks to the Doctor. 

Her thirst for exploring was just part of the reason the Doctor adored her. Rose was considerate too and lucky for him that meant on days she was exploring she made a point of finding him for afternoon tea. Today was no exception and his hearts skipped a beat when he heard her steps coming down the corridor. Wanting to be ready for her visit, he pulled himself from under the console and carefully cleaned off his hands.

“Hiya Doctor!” Rose called out, expecting to find him under the console. Seeing him standing there waiting for her she smiled. “What’s this then, you finished?” she asked with excitement, her eyes twinkling hopefully as she put her tea tray down.

“Ahhh, not quite but I am eager for your tea and company,” the Doctor said rubbing his hands together in anticipation and joining her as she offered his mug and a tray of biscuits. Naturally he grabbed more than one, mumbling around his first mouthful, “The good news, Rose Tyler, is I only have a couple more hours work and then I think you should get on a posh dress and we go somewhere special for dinner!”

Rose squealed and threw her arms around his neck, while he struggled not to spill his tea, and she turned to head to the corridor.

“Hey!” the Doctor called, “where are you going?”

“I have to start now, Doctor, if I’m to be ready by dinner. The process of preparing is important to the success of the evening, ya know!” she explained as though he was daft and didn’t understand the important things like picking out a posh dress.

“Now?” the Doctor whined, “surely Rose you can spare a few minutes for your chauffeur. Come tell me what you found in your explorations today,” he encouraged.

“Oh sure Doctor,” she said with a megawatt smile knowing he must be missing her company, “well, I only explored two storage rooms today, mostly because they were ginormous. One looked kinda like a garage with vehicles like motor cars, odd shaped flying things that looked like insects and then there were push machines like maybe lawnmowers with an attitude but when I was leaving I saw a giant mound of rocks that mighta been emeralds and rubies so I made a note in my log to speak to you about your filing system!” She smiled mischievously..

“Go on then,” the Doctor said tolerating her light hearted jab, “what else have you discovered?”

With her eyes sparkling she declared, “The second storage room was definitely more to my liking Doctor.” She hopped up and down, with her arms spread wide, as she explained, “Doctor, it was full, I mean full of crowns! All different sizes and shapes and designs and there were even some tiaras, like for princesses, and even some crowns made of horns that looked very fierce. I could easily spend days in there. They were so interesting. I think there were even Pharaoh headdresses in there, like from Egypt! But the topper, the absolute corker Doctor, was the huge pyramid in there! How is that even possible?” Her eyes were full of genuine wonder.

He loved her excitement and smiled indulgently as she explained what she had seen with animated gestures completely enthralled by her discoveries. In one day she had discovered more wealth than the gross domestic product of many planets yet she wasn’t the least bit interested in nicking a few crowns for herself or slipping a rock or two of emerald and ruby in her pockets. Not Rose, unlike some he’d had on board, it would never occur to her even though she was born into poverty and hard times. Rose Tyler was the real treasure on his ship.

Suddenly Rose remembered a topic she’d wanted to raise with him. “Doctor, ‘member when we were on Pellamembi Prime couple weeks back?” Seeing his nod she soldiered on, “Well, you might remember that’s where that grand mud puddle by the fair demanded the sacrifice of my trainer.” The Doctor nodded, his eyebrows raised, questioning her point.

“Well...” Rose said with some hesitation, “turns out I dropped my super phone too. It was in my hand and I dropped it in the puddle when I lost my shoe and my balance!” She grabbed a breath and with calming motions towards the Doctor she continued, “but, but the good news Doctor is that although the super phone doesn’t work anymore, I have found a solution in the crown storage room!” 

“Rose, you didn’t leave the super phone on the planet did you?” the Doctor asked.

“Course not Doctor, I know ya don’t leave future stuff behind. Brought it back with me now didn’t I?” 

His stern look had only been for show and it quickly dissolved into a grin. “Well then Rose Tyler,” he bubbled, “let’s see your storage room find then.”

“I brought it with me,” she said bending down and rummaging through her knapsack, “and it’s very sleek and modern looking even for my time period so I’m guessing its alien in origin. Ahhh, here it is!” Rose held the phone up triumphantly! 

Frowning the Doctor inquired, “You didn’t open it did you?”

“Nope, I followed the rules and to be honest with ya I don’t know that it is a phone but it just struck me it might be. What d’ya think Doctor?” she asked, handing the object to the Doctor.

Slipping his sonic screwdriver from his breast pocket he scanned the object, first on the exterior then flipped it open, studying the inner workings of the object. Finally the Doctor declared, “Hmmm, well there’s a receiver and a transmitter with unusual component parts, mostly the transmitter...hmmm, unusual.”

“Yeah, but will it work as a phone?” Rose asked with a bit of impatience. “See I haven’t called Mum in a bit and she’ll assume the worst.”

Looking up at her, still clearly puzzled by the object, he observed, “you could call Jackie from the console anytime Rose, you know that and, as for this object, yes it can be made to function as a phone. To be honest I believe it’s intended to be something else and I’m surprised to say I have no idea what,” he confessed with a broad smile on his face. 

Rose knew how excited he got when he discovered something beyond his experience mostly because he thrived on the mystery of figuring things out. “So, Doctor,” she said struggling to draw his attention away from the gadget, “if I can use it as a phone will I be able to access the internet and make phone lists ‘n stuff?” she asked.

Finally he looked up again, almost as though it took effort to tear himself away, “Nope, afraid not,” he concluded, “soooo, this will have to be a temporary solution. We’ll have to get you a new phone.” He flipped the device closed and began to sonic it to turn it into a basic cellphone.

“I’m sorry Doctor, for dropping the other phone you got me. I shoulda been more careful. I know those things are expensive.”

“Don’t be silly Rose. Accidents happen. I’ll get you another at my first opportunity. Look, all done,” he said handing her the phone with a wide smile. “Now you can call your Mum,”

“Thanks Doctor! I’m gonna go call her first, then get my logbook. Musta left it behind in the storage locker and then I’m gonna get ready to go out!” she declared happily. “See ya in two hours.”

The Doctor rolled his eyes at her, obviously doubting she’d be ready on time, but Rose paid him no mind and tripped happily down the corridor. 

Slipping back under the console the Doctor returned to his work knowing Rose would be more than two hours. What did she do during that time? Honestly, a quick shower took fifteen minutes. Well, it was true he took more time fixing his hair than showering but Rose liked his hair. She liked to touch it and he liked it when she did. 

If he thought about it Rose always fixed her hair nice and she always smelled nice and when her legs were bare they glowed with her lotions and they were always smooth so she probably shaved them. And when her feet were in sandals her toenails were always polished. The Doctor blinked. Was she doing all that for him like he fixed his hair for her? Was he doing enough? Maybe he should wear aftershave lotion? The Doctor pondered this thought as he worked on.

Jackie Tyler had just put down the phone after a disturbing conversation with her daughter. There was something not quite right and her mother radar was pinging. Rose had not seemed herself and when she’d tried to get her focused on the traffic accident Bev had been in, her daughter had seemed remote and uninterested. Rose should have wanted to know all the details and to visit Bev in hospital, yet all she could talk about was a tiara she’d found in some bloody storage locker! She was going to call the Doctor and find out what was going on.

Just as the TARDIS phone rang, the Doctor felt an urgent warning from his ship that Rose was in trouble and he should hurry to storage room 156. Vaulting out from under the console past the ringing phone, he paused briefly when he saw Rose’s log book on top of the open knapsack. Then he raced down the corridor skidding to a stop as he passed the room the TARDIS had moved closer. He pushed open the door and his hearts stopped seeing Rose crumpled on the floor under the rigging of an acrobatic scaffold from a circus. Beside her lay a sparkling tiara that had fallen off her head.


	2. Chapter 2

His hearts thumping he bent to her side fearing she had broken her neck! A quick scan told him she had only broken her arm and he breathed a sigh of relief. Carefully he lifted her heading to the infirmary where he treated her arm and sedated her. Satisfied his ship would alert him if Rose needed him, he returned to the storage room. 

He stood at the door looking into the cavernous room. The carnival rigging was large, bigger than most although it was dwarfed by the dimensions of the room. Why was it he’d put it here? He remembered an obscure Earth movie called ‘Something Wicked this Way Comes’ by Ray Bradbury. In the story the carnival leader had the power to grant secret desires but in reality he lived off the life force of those enslaved to their desires. As he stared up at the rigging he wondered if some similar power was involved. There were many things in the universe that fed off psychic energy. He’d hardly put this carnival equipment here because he had the urge to use it! What was Rose doing on it? 

In the distance he saw the pyramid Rose had mentioned and walked towards it. Now this he knew. It had impressive dimensions but it was not an Earth pyramid. It was from Gallifrey, designed as an energy converter. It was a backup he sometimes used because it functioned from planetary orbit capable of siphoning and converting energy from planets too inhospitable for him to land. Rose had a point. He really needed a better inventory and history for all this stuff and made a mental note to get the TARDIS to help him. 

Remembering the ringing phone he’d ignored in his haste to get to Rose, he left for the console room. Along the way he wondered why Rose had lied to him about going back to the storage room to retrieve her log book when it was clearly visible on top of her knapsack. She couldn’t have missed it when she’d rummaged through it earlier. Had her real intention been to return for the tiara? Why wouldn’t she just ask him if she could wear it for a lark? He knew she wasn’t a thief or a liar but her odd behavior told him something was up with her. 

Seeing the message button flashing, he picked up Jackie’s message and hastened to return her call. Jackie pounced on the ringing phone.

“Doctor, I spoke to Rose awhile ago and I’m tellin’ ya there’s somethin’ wrong with her!”

Noting Jackie had got right to the point without her typical opening complaints and her usual disparaging remarks about him, the Doctor paid close attention.

“What happened Jackie?” he asked.

As Jackie replayed the conversation the Doctor’s concern notched up. If something was wrong with Rose it happened here in his ship and here was where it would have to be solved. If he told Jackie he had concerns too, she would insist he bring Rose home, especially if he mentioned the accident. That would lessen the chance he could get to the bottom of the problem.   
“Jackie, you’re right! That’s very out of character for Rose. I’ve been doing necessary repairs to my ship for four days and Rose has been exploring the ship’s storage lockers. She’s gone to her room to sleep but first thing in the morning I’ll look into it right away. Tomorrow I’ll take her out for dinner and assess if something is up. I’ll call you after. Promise!” he declared.

“You better Doctor! I’m tellin’ ya, something is not right and I’m proper worried about her.”

“I know Jackie and you did the right thing. I promise I’ll call.”

He signed off after a minimal amount of abuse from Jackie which was a clear sign of how worried she was. Spying the knapsack Rose had left in the console room, he retrieved the logbook flipping to the last entry. He stared at what she’d written and felt a chill. Her large looping script went on for a page and a half, starting strong and finishing with a wobbly scrawl. Over and over she’d written, ‘Transfer is needed. Don’t let him interfere’.

In the infirmary he found Rose sleeping soundly and carefully carried her to where she would be most comfortable. Setting her on her bed and covering her, he studied the slopes of the face he so admired. Something was going on and he had to get to the bottom of it. It was now urgent he finish the repairs. Not knowing what they were facing, he wanted his ship fully capable should he have to call her into service. 

Several hours later, his work finished, he returned to her room to check on her arm. Finding her sound asleep and her arm fully healed he bent down to tuck the blankets around her. He felt a hard object on one side. Lifting the blanket he froze when he spied the bloody, sparkling tiara in her bed. Rassilon, had she gone to get it? What was going on? He snatched it up to return it to the storage room and this time he would lock it inside.

As he walked down the corridor his unease notched upward. In her bed Rose Tyler began to toss and turn fitfully.

Rose stumbled into the galley the next morning in her customary, bleary-eyed state. She was not a morning person whereas he was usually high energy mostly stemming from his delight at seeing her again. But he’d learned the hard way to wait until she had her first cuppa before inundating her with plans for the day. As he handed her mug over he studied her carefully.

“Ta Doctor,” she mumbled swallowing her tea gratefully, “how are ya?”

“In the pink,” he replied, still studying her, “molto bene and good morning I might add!”

“Yeah, same to you. So ya gonna tell me what you’re starin’ at?” Rose asked looking up from her tea.

“You don’t remember breaking your arm last night?”

“What? What are ya talkin’ about?” Rose asked, stretching her arms out in front of her. “My arms are fine!”

The Doctor studied her micro expressions and knew she was telling the truth. Whatever was happening to her she wasn’t aware when it was happening. He found that unnerving, not because it indicated a psychological break, like most Earth doctors would conclude but for their context, it implied she was under the influence of something or someone and had no memory of it afterwards.

“Your arm, right arm by the way, is fine because I fixed it Rose. It troubles me you seem to have no memory of the event, if I’m honest.”

“Troubles you? It troubles me Doctor! I swear I have no memory of it. Could I have hit my head or somethin’?” she asked, now fully awake.

He’d already scanned her but just to double check he ran the sonic around her head slowly, while filling her in on what had happened. “Rose, I found you under a circus acrobatic scaffold by the way, and what were you doing on it?” he asked, hoping his question would trigger her memory.

Considering his question carefully she replied, “Well, I went to get my logbook and all I remember was seeing the tiara at the top of the rigging so I felt I should get it down.”

“Did you find the logbook?” 

Rose was puzzled why she couldn’t remember looking for it. Likewise she couldn’t remember calling her mother. The Doctor could tell she was alarmed. 

Brushing his knuckles against her cheek he tried to reassure her. “The good news Rose is that there is no concussion in evidence and no indication of symptoms related to memory loss either. So whatever is going on here is an external influence,” he pronounced.

Rose looked up at him. “So same old, same old,” she stated with a crooked smile. Then she stood and walked into his arms. “What’s goin’ on Doctor? What if it happens again?” she asked plaintively.

As he lowered his head and kissed the top of hers he reassured her, “Don’t worry Rose, we’ll figure it out. But, in the meantime, let’s keep our plans to go to dinner.”

“‘Kay,” Rose replied, “I’m a bit scared, if I’m honest. If I can’t remember what I’ve done, if some force is workin’ through me, what if I do somethin’ horrible.

Now that was the real Rose, the Doctor thought. Just like her to be worried about someone else. Giving her a tight hug he left her to finish her breakfast and headed to storage locker 156 to unlock it. If he was to get to the bottom of this he had to give her access. He hated to do it but access was not enough, he’d have to keep her under surveillance and that troubled him but it had to be done if he was to sort this out.

He hadn’t pressed her on the matters Jackie had raised. He planned to have a conversation with her over dinner at a posh restaurant. Assuming she was still herself, he knew she’d want to reassure her mother and he wanted to be sure she didn’t further alarm Jackie until he figured out how to sort all this business out.

Later in the console room, after admiring each other’s appearance, the Doctor offered his arm and they both swept out of the ship. The Doctor felt sure Rose would comment on the magical evening. There were twinkling lights on the picturesque bridge and they reflected back up at them from the meandering river below. But Rose was not herself. Crossing the bridge entrance to the restaurant Rose didn’t notice the enchanted setting. She hadn’t even reacted when they’d left the ship. When Rose Tyler stood on a new planet her excitement lit up her face, every single time! 

Sweeping his gaze over her it bothered him she was neutral and absent from the moment. That absence reminded him that Rose made his life so much more interesting and he wanted her back. She’d been back to herself this morning but now she was gone again. He would review his ship’s surveillance when they got back, determined to get to the bottom of the enigma affecting her. 

It was a fancy restaurant and they were seated on a lovely patio treating them to a spectacular view of the stars. A temperate breeze perfumed by the flowering trees and surrounding gardens wafted gently by their table with a gorgeous scent. The service was attentive and sophisticated. Still, it was colorless for the Doctor because something was not right with Rose. 

While she always loved it when he took her to an upscale place, he knew she usually felt a bit out of place. On those occasions she sat closer to him and kept her hand in his. She worried she’d say the wrong thing or demonstrate, in some way, she wasn’t from the right class. Of course she outclassed them all as far as he was concerned. But this evening she didn’t sit close to him. She barely acknowledged he was there.

Their meal was exquisite but she didn’t say anything so he decided to start digging.

“Rose, your Mum’s worried about you.”

“What do you mean Doctor?”

“She said you weren’t the least bit interested when she told you that Bev had been in an automobile accident.”

“Why would that concern you Doctor?” she replied with an air of boredom, “you know my Mother can truly exaggerate. Sometimes I just tune out the drone because she just never stops. Really, it’s like she is pathologically unable to stop talking!”

Watching her he noted the atypical speech pattern, the indolent familiarity with which she held her wine glass. If that wasn’t enough to convince him she was not Rose, then the contempt with which she spoke about Jackie sealed it. 

The trouble for the moment was figuring out the nature of the problem. Was she exposed to some substance affecting her brain and by extension her personality or had some entity taken up residence. For now he would talk to her and see if he could glean any hints from her manner.

“I’m surprised to hear you so critical of your Mother, especially after all she’s done for you.”

Rose made eye contact with him. He suppressed a shudder taking in her cold stare and something else. Yes, he saw disdain in her eyes for her mother, or perhaps for him.

Pitching his voice low and quiet, trying to draw out something of the real Rose, he asked, “Don’t you remember Rose, how many times your Mother worked three jobs so she could give you a holiday at the beach, buy you a Christmas present you really wanted and treat you to a pretty dress? 

He was sure he saw a softening in her eyes but it quickly neutralized and then hardened. While it was disheartening to see her spirit fade, it solidified his sense that a battle of wills was underway. This was an entity battling to control Rose Tyler. That was not allowed.

With a sneer on her face she answered the Doctor, “Yes well those gifts were mostly cheap and garish. Less bridge playing and wine drinking with her card playing low-lifes and I might have gotten a proper education.”

His appetite gone, he signaled for the bill deciding to forego dessert. Getting ready to leave, Rose opened her bag to get her lipstick and he saw the tiara glittering darkly.


	3. Chapter 3

On the walk back to the TARDIS the Doctor was withdrawn and worried. His mind was racing and he was laser focused on his next moves. If an entity was controlling her from a distance within the ship, that was bad enough but probably easier to isolate and contain. But if an entity was in her mind that was more serious. The human mind didn’t do well when invaded and was far more likely to have permanent damage. He had to get this mess sorted! Wrenched from his thoughts, he was surprised when Rose stopped him at the familiar blue doors coyly looking up at him.

“Doctor, you look very good tonight, hmmmm, don’t you just! You look good enough to eat, I have to say.” She ran her hands over his chest and then aggressively pulled him down to her lips. 

Rose Tyler had stirred all his long buried desires during their travels together but this was not the Rose he desired. His Rose would know how inappropriate to the situation, to the mood of the evening, her aggressive actions were. 

Whoever this being was it pursued its goal with no shame, pressing lips and body against him until he took hold of her hands.

“Let’s go inside Rose,” he said neutrally. 

He knew that his ship would keep her constrained within while he tried to sort out the mess they were in. Letting her hands go, he turned from her only to face another barrage of hands and lips including an intimate pawing between his legs.

Stepping close to her, constraining her against a coral strut, he cupped her cheeks tenderly and tried to reach the real Rose Tyler. “Rose, are you there? Is this what YOU want? Please Rose, tell me want you want.” 

He held his breath and his hearts skipped when he saw her personality emerge within her liquid eyes and witnessed her struggle to be heard.

“I want you...” she rasped, her words strongly laced with conviction, “but not like this, Doctor.” she finished. But the Doctor knew it was her, knew it was her feelings about him and he didn’t want to lose her before speaking his truth.

Before she was subsumed by the other personality, he put his lips to her ear, “Me too Rose and when I get you back I’m not waiting anymore. Do you hear me Rose? I want to be with you and I’m coming for you Rose!” He hoped he wasn’t imagining the relief in her eyes before she was overtaken and the intrusive pawing and rubbing of her body against him resumed.

“”STOP,” he ordered, shaking her loose, “I’m not in the mood!”

“You’re never in the mood! I’m going out! I’ll get someone better than you,” she spat at him. “You better be here when I get back!”

Ignoring her, the Doctor instructed his ship to scan the tiara in Rose’s purse for any energy signatures and to search records for the tiara’s history and any related commentary. Puzzled by his inability to remember when he’d stored the damn thing, he hoped a search of its past might solve several mysteries. His thoughts racing, he expected the scans would also give him something to go on to stop the tiara’s malevolent hold on Rose. 

Based on what he knew, he concluded it’s influence was related to proximity. When it was in her purse close to her, another personality emerged but, when in the storage room, it had been limited to summoning her closer. But why now? Why hadn’t the tiara done this with other companions before Rose? Ahhh, he thought, she was the only companion that enjoyed exploring the storage lockers and she must have touched it as she admired it. Suddenly his thoughts were interrupted by a shrill demand. 

“Hey, let me out of here!” Rose shouted, as she pounded on the TARDIS doors.

“No, it’s for your own safety. Now go to bed and leave that tiara with me!”

“NO!, you can’t have it!” With that Rose took off down the corridor to her room and locked herself in.

Well, for now at least, he knew where she was. Turning to the console monitor he saw a message had been left. No doubt it was Jackie. Damn he didn’t want to talk to her yet! Pausing, he wrestled with his conscience and finally he flicked the switch to hear the message, shocked to realize it wasn’t Jackie.

“Doctor?” a plaintive voice, tiny and frightened, called out. “Please come get me. I don’t know where I am.” A stifled sob escaped as Rose finished her message, “I’m afraid Doctor, please come get me.”

He didn’t know when or how the message was left but it ended with the Doctor on fire to get her back and he vowed, “I’m coming for you. I’ll save you Rose Tyler!”

There was something he could try to protect her at least until the scans gave him the information he needed to rid her of this unwanted intrusion. But first he called Jackie and gave her an outline of the situation. 

It took a complete hour and a great deal of patience from him to answer all her questions, explain multiple times why taking Rose home would not stop the problem, calm her hysteria and stop himself from yelling at her. He was literally vibrating to get back to sorting out Rose. Normally Time Lords pushed the constant tracking of time to the back of their minds but for the last hour he saw and heard every single second pass by, a whole hour and 45 seconds he was not helping Rose. But he endured because he needed something from Jackie. Finally she started listening.

“Well then,” Jackie demanded, “what are we gonna do Doctor? Can ya just throw it out in space maybe?”

Knowing she was scared and desperate he softened. “Jackie, it’s a good idea and I did think of it, but if her mind is compromised, the intruder might just take up permanent residence in her mind. But there is something that might work. I am a telepath, a strong telepath. I want to enter her mind, evict whatever it is and erect shields in Rose’s mind to prevent it from entering her mind again.”

“Whaaat?” Jackie asked sounding like she was going to be sick. “You gonna invade her thoughts instead of this, this thing! Are ya tellin’ me you’ve already been in her mind? Have you been using mind control to keep her with you all this time?”

“No, no Jackie!” the Doctor countered vehemently, “in my culture there are strict punishments against that. It’s against every rule I live by. I would have to have Rose’s informed consent before entering her mind. And I would never, ever snoop through her memories. What I would do is technical, more like bio-chemical defenses. I would NOT snoop!.”

The situation was getting alarmingly serious so Jackie chose to believe him. “So if she can’t give permission, what d’ya wanna do?” Jackie asked ready to grab any option that had a chance.

“I would like your permission Jackie, instead of your daughter’s. I think I can bring her back!”

“Then do it Doctor! If a mum can’t give permission then who can? Especially when my little girl can’t speak for herself.” 

The Doctor was upset to hear Jackie sounding so scared and forlorn. “I’ll figure it out Jackie, don’t you worry! I promise. I’ll get back to you soon.”

Although he wanted to run to Rose and protect her mind, he forced himself to calmness, ordering his mind according to the practices of his people. He was about to engage in mental warfare, one where the enemy had abilities unknown to him. He had to steel himself to the task, prepare his mind for critical analysis and above all avoid succumbing to the temptation of Rose’s mind. He knew her mind would call to him and the hunger of a starving telepath knew no bounds, fed as it was, by his attraction to Rose, whom he favored above all others. 

Having acknowledged his weakness, he fiercely buried these thoughts, hoping his action would prevent the enemy from using it as a weapon against him. Then he began the breathing disciplines of the ancient masters and he felt rational calm assert itself in his mind. When he opened his eyes, he was ready. 

Perhaps not wanting to startle him, his ship chose a soft bing bing to alert him her scans were complete. 

Seizing the monitor he studied the results. They proved the folly of his assumptions. The tiara was an amplifier not a transmitter. Something else was transmitting to Rose through the tiara. But who or what? At least he’d resisted sonicing the tiara because, according to the research, it was designed to amplify any energy wave but was most efficient with sonic energy waves.

Reading further he learned the tiara had been in the TARDIS before he stole her. No wonder he couldn’t remember putting it away. It was a Gallifreyan artifact designed to enable communion between a telepath and a non-telepath. Communion? The Doctor’s eyebrows arched because he knew that was a euphemism for telepathic sex.

But what or who was transmitting to the tiara? He turned to the surveillance record. Rose had obviously gone to get the tiara before they left for the restaurant. He watched her, already in her flattering evening dress, hurrying down the corridor towards the storage locker. She looked lovely but he noticed her gait was different. Despite her heels, her walk had a sliding quality to it but with an element of ‘tiptoe’ about it. Whatever was governing her didn’t want to be discovered. 

She entered the storage locker hurried to the plinth on which he’d left the tiara. He heard the rapid taps of her heels over the polished floor as she hurried to the front of the pyramid. The TARDIS had switched angles of view so he could see what she was doing. She pressed a series of buttons, that she had no way of knowing were even there, and walked inside. Time Lords did not like their technology used by others. How in the hell did she know how to open the pyramid? And how could whatever was guiding her know? 

But his absorbing little drama got more perplexing still when Rose placed the tiara under one of several central columns, pressed more buttons and then rapidly exited, closing the opening. But she didn’t leave. Astonished he watched her pacing back and forth, wringing her hands. She kept taking her rejigged phone from her purse looking at what he was sure was the time. The phone only did two things, make and receive calls and tell time. Ten minutes of her agitation followed and then she opened the pyramid, snatched the tiara, and left. Before Rose closed the pyramid, the Doctor studied the equipment that had held the tiara in close up view. It looked like a straightforward frequency converter. Made sense since the whole contraption was an energy converter and that sometimes involved adjusting frequencies. 

Was Rose changing the frequencies the tiara could amplify in some way? He didn’t want to speculate. He needed solid data. He asked the TARDIS to scan the tiara again focusing on identifying the frequency change and any other changes since the last scan. Whatever entity was using this tiara wanted a more comfortable environment or a more effective connection with the transmitter. But what was the transmitter? Could it be it that damn phone with the weird circuitry? It must still be in Rose’s purse.

Until he could retrieve it, there was no reason not to shield Rose’s mind first. Then he’d find the phone and destroy it! Steeling himself for an expected confrontation, he stood at her door sonicing it open. As he entered he called her name. He wasn’t sure how many times Rose had explained he was supposed to wait until she gave permission to enter. He tried to give her privacy but he was used to going wherever he wanted in his ship and when he wanted to see Rose he saw no reason to delay!

Looking around the darkened room, he saw her lying supine on her bed. Her melting eyes captured his and his stomachs dropped. Perhaps when he’d briefly reached the real Rose and learned she wanted him he had told the enemy too much about them.

Rose was naked and as she sat up, the slinky sheets whispered as they slipped down her torso. 

“Have you come for me?” she whispered.

His mental disciplines went the way of the sheets.


	4. Chapter 4

Oh she was a beauty that captured all his senses and stoked his desires. And she sounded like the real Rose, her voice husky and sultry like the Rose he wanted. And now he was held captive by her soft curves, molded to perfection by the toned muscles beneath her golden flesh. Oh yes, he wanted her completely. He wanted to know what she felt like, what sounds she would make when he pleasured her. 

But he’d heard the siren’s call before and he knew the dangers and deceptions that hid behind a lilting voice and soft eyes. He’d been tempted many times by powerful illusions and he hadn’t succumbed and now his internal alarms were telling him to be wary. This wasn’t Rose. More likely the intelligence behind this now knew how to manipulate him. He’d been careless and now they were both vulnerable. He’d let the entity know he had feelings for her. 

From the time he’d met her he was drawn to her as though he knew she could make him better. Then he’d slammed the brakes on, often gruff with her for no reason other than the desires she ignited in him until he’d regenerated and scared her, making her feel abandoned. He’d been a proper arse! 

From that point on, in his new body, it had been ridiculous the lengths he’d gone to so he could stay close to her. His people would have found his behavior odd and in need of correction. What would they think of his obsession to be with her physically and mentally? No doubt they would find it disgusting. Yeah, well they had no idea the lengths he would go to in order to save her. 

It had always felt like Rose was meant for him. He trusted her with his life. He was never more calm or more sane than when she was by his side. By Rassilon, he was not going to let her down now when she was being mentally manipulated. 

A last longing look at her naked form and he forced his mind to discipline. For the moment he’d decided against destroying the tiara. It was an amplifier and it would make it easier to detect the intruder in Rose’s mind. 

“Do you know why I call you ‘lovely’ Rose?” he whispered in the darkened room. “Because ‘lovely’ is better than ‘beautiful’. Its dictionary definition is “exquisitely beautiful,” and though I am not one for textbook definitions, it still surprises me that not even ‘lovely’ is good enough to describe you.”

She looked up at him, but her eyes were distant and not in the moment. He went to her and knelt beside the bed not surprised when she leaned forward reaching for his lips. As he felt their softness and caught her scent, he reminded himself the behavior was likely forced and not her choice. Berating himself, he ruthlessly applied his mental disciplines and reached for her temples.

He realized he’d made a huge mistake when he found her mind awash in Silvertyne energy. Psychic energies had different frequencies and Silvertyne energies operated at a frequency that was corporeal enough to control physical objects! 

This particular type of energy signature was not a single entity so much as the mental energy from multiple beings that had been extinguished simultaneously from some genocide or horror of war perhaps. The collective mental cry from individual beings fused together creating a psychic energy corporeal enough to use Rose and control her just as well as an individual entity. 

Careful not to make assumptions again he speculated about their purpose and the most likely possibility was to use Rose to get to him or his ship, perhaps to enable them to travel for purposes he did not yet know. Her brain was permeated with this peculiar energy and the appalling reality was it could crush her mind and he didn’t know how bad her situation was but it wasn’t good. He was in her mind yet he couldn’t sense her, only the invasive energy. He had to figure it out or her mind would soon be gone. 

Panic left an acrid taste in his mouth and the urge to run assaulted him but run to where? He couldn’t sense where her conscious essence was! Every moment he wasted her mind was being crushed beneath the weight of the invading energy. 

Stupid! Stupid! He’d made assumptions this was a single entity, but it wasn’t and Rose had tried to signal him and he’d still bollocksed it all up. How she must have struggled to exhibit the personality changes he and Jackie had witnessed. It was his clever Rose signaling him something was wrong with her. How in the hell she’d managed it he couldn’t say but then she was amazing. 

Lives take shape in ways you just can’t anticipate. Even Time Lords couldn’t see their own time lines. Loss had been the principal and defining characteristic of his journey but it had also shown him what was precious in his life and it was Rose. She lit up all his days with wonder and gratefulness. He had to get her back!

For the moment he was protected from the effects of this peculiar energy because his telepathy operated at a different frequency and he’d heavily shielded his mind. Looking around he could see the autonomic operations of her brain were starting to slow. Oh that was bad, very, very bad! Just as he was about to yell to her, a countryside vista manifested itself before him.

The image solidified gradually and remained faded and washed out. It was naively drawn, like one would find in a child’s storybook. Through the image ran a faded yellow road. Curious, the Doctor thought, it was clearly an Earth image. Because it was a weak mental projection and one that had taken some time to come together, he sensed it was unlikely to provoke reaction from the Silvertyne energy. Were it not for his superior telepathic vision and perceptions, he would have missed it. This mindscape was coming from Rose so he decided to follow the road through the landscape.

Desperate to run down the path and find her, he schooled himself to calm. That would prove fruitless because he would just out run her ability to produce the images. Rose was struggling to build these images and was no doubt taxed close to the limit of her strength. And it would hurt too, trying to concentrate her mind to form the images when her head was pounding! She would feel crushed by the Silvertyne energy and the nails-on-a-blackboard screeching sound of it’s frequency. 

He saw a large piece of paper lying on the path at his feet and picked it up. A crude drawing, it depicted many humanoid shapes with one at center that had a crown. He studied the picture which was fading fast and just before it was too late, at the very back of the drawing, he saw a tiny stick figure with fading yellow hair. Rose was telling him she was being overwhelmed by the energy of multitudes.

“I know Rose. I’m so sorry and I am on the way. Please hang on Rose,” he pleaded. 

She had to be in agony. The only way he could help her was to stay focused. It would prove to be the most difficult thing he had ever done. To one side of the yellow road he saw a cartoon train and in it’s window he saw a stick girl with broad strokes of blonde hair. She had teardrops on her face and lightning zig-zag slashes by her head. She was telling him she was in pain and didn’t know if she could last.

“Rose, listen to me sweetheart. This is too hard on you. Let’s make it easier okay?. I need to get to where you’re hiding so I can shield your mind from the noise and pain. Let all the images go and flash the color mauve when I go the wrong way and green when I’m going the right way. Okay?”

Relief flooded him when he saw the train, the image and the road disappear and he metaphorically stepped forward. He saw mauve and turned a quarter, taking a step. She flashed green. And so it went until the feeling of mental density increased and he knew he was getting closer. He caught his first sense of her. It was oh so faint and he worried the crush on her mind was winning. 

When he reached her he feared it was too late. Here in this tiny corner of her mind he finally perceived her consciousness and he wrapped his mind around hers instantly dampening the cacophony in her mind. He did! He did! He did hear her sigh. Because he was unaffected by the strange energy his protections relieved her feeling of being crushed. Her mental energy was all but depleted and it scared him to feel her exhaustion and to feel her letting go. 

Drawing all his powers of concentration he reached for her consciousness and thankfully she was there but not for long. 

Weakly he heard her thought or maybe her warning when she whispered, “The red and gold lady wants me.”

Puzzled by what she meant he felt her pass out and knew she was not likely to wake soon. He triggered the feel good chemicals in her mind to help relieve her pain. 

Then he faced a cold, stark reality. He’d assumed it was an entity and therefore he could evict it and build shields to prevent its return. But their enemy operated at a mental frequency his telepathy couldn’t touch. He couldn’t build shields to keep something out that was already firmly occupying her mind. He couldn’t get the energy to vacate unless he broke physical contact with Rose to go find that odd phone. And if he did then Rose would have no protection. And if he could find the damn phone he couldn’t assume he could destroy it for fear these entities would take up permanent occupancy in her mind. He suspected that was their purpose all along. Destroy her mind and use her body as the instrument to carry out their purposes in the real world. 

He’d have to put the phone in a faraday cage and increase the distance of the tiara. In this way the energy’s strength in her mind would be greatly reduced giving Rose time to recover. Then he could study the phone and find a way to destroy it that wouldn’t damage Rose. But if he left her mind now to do what was required, her mind would be instantly vulnerable and the energy would make its final move and Rose would be gone leaving behind her body to be used for Rassilon knows what. He would have lost her because of his bloody cocksure assumptions.

His options were painfully limited. He tried to reach the TARDIS but he couldn’t get through the surrounding Silvertyne energy. Desperately searching for an alternative he was forced to conclude there was only one option left. If he wanted to continue protecting her mind and be free to move around the ship to get the phone, he would have to bond with her, and given her present state she was in no condition to give her consent. 

Maintaining his physical connection to her, he maneuvered onto her bed after managing to cover her naked torso with the blanket. Holding her close to him, he decided to wait a few hours hoping the meager respite from the onslaught she’d endured might help her mind recover more quickly. He held her in his arms, breathing her in, because his touch was necessary to maintain the protections he’d placed in her mind and because it might be the last time he was allowed to touch her.


	5. Chapter 5

The thought of never touching her again shook him deeply. But there were no alternatives to bonding with her that he could see. After he had given her several hours of rest, he knew he was just being selfish. His bond with her would be one-sided but he would be able to continue his protection of her mind from a distance. He needed to move within the ship to banish her psychic attackers. It was beyond heinous to bond with someone against their will, but equally appalling to do so with someone unconscious. His inner turmoil was considerable but it boiled down to the fact that Rose could be out for days before she could give informed consent and she needed help now. 

He wouldn’t hesitate to give his last regeneration for her and he would willingly bond with her to save her, despite the consequences for him. When Rose learned what he had done to her, she would eventually turn away from him with distrust and suspicion. When she inevitably left him, no matter how far away he was from her in time and space, his bond would place him there with her in her mind. 

Emotional pain isn’t felt the way a cut or bruise is. It’s much different and only you can tell it is there. Sometimes the pain is at the back of your mind like a pulse. Other times it pushes itself forward demanding attention, cutting your hearts and mind in half, stinging with every breath you take. If she was with someone else it would feel raw like he had no skin and a gentle wind could make him bleed. But he would do it with no regret because it would save Rose.

If he was honest with himself, he had dreamed of bonding with Rose more than once. In his dreams she wanted him completely without reservation. And when they bonded, it always felt like the only place he wanted to be - at home with his mate, forgiven and happy. But he wasn’t entitled to dreams. They would never come true for him. Instead he would bind himself to her. without her consent, in darkness and fear, and feel his hearts break when he lost her trust. 

He did it as gently and slowly as he could, being careful to tie his bond with care and with his love. Oh Rose, he thought, can you ever forgive me? When he was done, he left her side knowing his mind was still protecting her. The path was set, no turning back now.

He rummaged around until he found her purse, scooped up the phone and tiara and raced down the corridor. In the storage room he threw the tiara into place and then ran to the pyramid with the phone. It had donned on him the pyramid would act as a faraday cage preventing it’s transmissions from escaping. Rose would be free and the tiara would be nothing but a tiara. Because he wasn’t destroying the phone and it’s psychic transmissions were trapped, there was no risk the Silvertyne energy could permanently transfer to Rose. 

Later, he would study the ship’s scans before deciding how to destroy these objects. For the moment, he needed to get Rose to the infirmary to treat her but some instinct drove him to check what she had done with the frequency converter. He studied the readings with increasing alarm. What the hell? No, no, no, damn, he’d done it again! Assumed he was right and not looked for other explanations. She’d warned him too, with her last bit of strength! Once with the cartoon image of a crowned figure, and then she’d warned him again with her reference to the red and gold lady all while her mind was battered and bruised. 

“Oh Rose, I’m sorry, so sorry.” He careened from the pyramid slapping the buttons to close it and raced down the corridor back to Rose. Barreling through her door he slid into place beside her bed fixing his fingers to her temples and entered her mind to take a closer look.

With Rose’s mind protected by him and with his shields bristling he demanded, “Identify yourself now!”

As the Doctor expected the intruder took the form of a Time Lady in full red and gold regalia - Rose’s red lady. Her demeanor was imperious but that was in keeping with his experience of time ladies in general. She was the one Rose had been trying to warn him about and he had missed it twice! She’d been part of the Silvertyne energy but had used Rose and the frequency converter to pull herself free from it and now existed as mental energy with the same frequency as his!

“My identity is immaterial. But know this, I served under the Supreme Cardinal of Time. I have lived centuries beyond my death. With the sheer force of my will I held the mental energy of my clan and myself together. You are no match for me Time Lord. Relinquish this human. I need to convert from incorporeal to physical form.”

“She is under my protection and she is a sentient being. You have no right to crush her mind. You cannot have her Ollistra!”

The Time Lady and her psychically projected image were clearly surprised the Doctor had figured out her identity. 

“I will have her, you will be my pilot and we will reestablish our kind. With this TARDIS we will find vessels for the members of my clan. It will be your salvation for the crimes you committed. Do not oppose me.”

The Doctor laughed. “Clearly you have a low opinion of me and my abilities but before you attempt to psychically batter me into submission may I point out you are not in a good negotiating position.”

The Doctor studied her image and was surprised to see fear in her eyes. That told him she was not applying standard Time Lord controls on her reactions. It may be she was applying all her strength to hold the remnants of her clan together and he had to admire her for it. It was an incredible accomplishment and he couldn’t help but respect her.

Continuing he observed dryly, “You might want to consider the very, very important thing you have forgotten.” The Doctor paused waiting for her response and then continued, “No? Can’t think of it? Well, let me enlighten you. You’ve existed as pure energy for centuries and over the years you’ve forgotten something very, very important.”

“Is there a point anywhere in my future?” Ollistra asked.

“Here’s the thing,” the Doctor noted, “you’ve forgotten physicality. For instance, all this time we’ve been having this lovely chat in our minds, I’ve been walking. It’s a lovely thing walking, moving muscles, feeling alive. Oh yes I sense your question - so what, you wonder?. Well, you see right now I’m standing right in front of the frequency converter.”

The Doctor felt her rage and prepared himself for a mental onslaught. “Now, now, is that anyway to behave when I haven’t told you the second thing you forgot! You are so used to mentally projecting you’ve forgotten your shields. While you were regaling me with your plans, I moved you from Rose’s mind to mine and I slipped by your poorly maintained defenses and now I know your true name. You know what that means. You will obey me or I will use your name to destroy you!”

He saw her heartbreak and sorrow that she had failed. She had done this out of desperation. He wanted to help her and beyond that he knew he could never destroy her or his people a second time. He had to find a solution for her.

He made a decision. “Ollistra, I’m going to find a solution for you. I give you my word. There are ways to create organic bodies you and your colleagues can inhabit and learn to live again and I’ll find you a planet. I’m also going to change the frequency to make it more comfortable for you to hold your clan together. You hang on, it won’t be long. I swear I will help you.”

Ollistra nodded and he was heartened by the look of hope in her eyes as she disappeared from his mind returned to the Silvertyne energy and her compatriots held within the phone safe within the pyramid.

After converting their energies to a more comfortable frequency, he returned to the infirmary. He was a blur of activity setting scanners, hooking up equipment to filter stress and fear enzymes from her blood, injecting her with a chemical cocktail to not only restore but strengthen brain function. He decided against a sedative because he thought natural sleep more restorative. For the moment she was unconscious but would move into sleep soon. She needed a restorative dose of REM sleep. He would stay with her until she woke. 

Holding her hand he whispered, “Please come back to me Rose.” He meant it in more ways than one. 

Keeping watch over her, checking the medical read outs regularly, he concluded she was slower than expected moving from unconsciousness to sleep. But he wasn’t worried about it. In some respects her brain was resting and that was good. He was particularly relieved to sense no Silvertyne energy in her mind. She was herself again. 

DWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDWDW

Opening her eyes slowly, needing several moments to get her bearings, Rose took comfort from his hand in hers. She sighed because he was near and that meant everything must be all right. Looking around she saw him sleeping in his chair, his long legs extended and crossed at the ankle, his head tipped down on his chest. She smiled at his wildly disheveled hair. For it to be in that state she must have given him a fright.

The Doctor wasn’t like any man she’d ever met. He had so many more reasons than most to be bitter but somehow he managed to walk and talk like he’d just been on an inspiring hike in the mountains. Somehow he didn’t allow the stress to sink in and twist the good in him. Maybe he just had more perspective than most, having travelled time and space for close to a thousand years. But that just made it more amazing that every day was still fresh to him, every person he met was too. He wouldn't know how to hold a grudge if it came with handles, well, he couldn’t be blamed for the Daleks could he? 

Just being near him was like taking an exhilarating adventure, but still, he had many disguises to hide his true feelings. Although she had learned to read him sometimes, he was never an open book. Sometimes his enthusiasm and it’s blur of activity were masks for emotional turmoil. She loved this lonely alien with all her heart.

She shifted onto one side to enjoy his innocence in sleep even though it was marred by the clear signs of stress on his face. He was handsome, long and lean and so strong. But she’d learned his packaging could change and the most important bit was the depth of his character. It never wavered from one regeneration to the next.

It was always strange when you knew you were dreaming but the dream was so pleasing you didn’t want to wake. The Doctor basked in Rose Tyler’s regard for him, yes, even her love for him. He rarely allowed himself to indulge in such fantasies but it felt so good he didn’t want to wake. But then his bond told him she was awake and his eyes popped open in shock!

“Rose!” he called, shooting to his feet and in the process crashing against the monitoring equipment, sending several instruments clanging to the floor as he pronounced the obvious, “you’re awake!”

His feet tripped over the mess of equipment on the floor and he landed face first between Rose’s breasts! The only saving grace was the blanket maintaining her modesty.

Just as quickly the Doctor sprang up, his hands nervously fluttering over the blanket as he cleared his throat.

Of course Rose was used to a certain amount of this ungainly, awkward behavior but it generally only occurred when he felt guilty about something. The Doctor was normally quite graceful and could be the master of deception and subterfuge with his enemies but he seemed unable to maintain the required poker face with her. Still she could get to the bottom of it later. Right now she was feeling fuzzy, like she’d had a wild night out with her mates and she had the headache to match.

Letting him off the hook she looked up at him and said, “Did ya miss me?” 

She watched his face soften from quilty face to affectionate regard, “Oh yes, Rose Tyler! I missed you and you gave me and your Mum half a fright, you did!”

“Doctor, how’d I get naked?” 

“Tea?” he asked bending to pick up the scattered instruments with a great deal of clattering as he deposited everything on the nearby metal table with a final crescendo of clanging racket.

Okay Rose thought, something was definitely going on with him. He was way too skittish and that meant spending some time calming him down before she’d get anything out of him.

“Okay,” she replied, “sounds good and I have a headache so...”

Before she could finish he’d whirled around and started scanning her with the sonic. Finally satisfied he nodded and said, “Okay, meet you in the galley with tea and tablets.” With that he spun around and left the infirmary.

Oh brother, Rose thought as she slipped off the infirmary bed and headed to her room to get dressed. At least life with the Doctor was interesting.


	6. Chapter 6

The Doctor decided not to access his bond with Rose to find out what she thought. He felt it wasn’t fair until Rose had time to heal and fully understand their situation. Over tea he asked, “What do you remember Rose?”

Idly she stirred her tea as she pulled her thoughts together. “Well, there are mostly blank spots where I don’t remember anythin’ really, except for I couldn’t find you and I didn’t know where I was. I called for you but I couldn’t hear you answer and I was scared.” 

Reaching for her hand he explained, “Rose you managed to do something brilliant to alert me! Honestly I don’t even know how you did it but you left a phone message for me. Somehow your psychic cry registered a message!” 

Suddenly the Doctor stared off into the distance pondering this fact. He now knew the personality changes had not been Rose but the red lady, but how had Rose managed the phone call? 

Squeezing her hand, he encouraged, “What else do you remember?” He smiled with all the reassurance he could muster.

I remember when we talked about what was going on but it’s like I’d just blink out into a dark space. I know that sounds daft,” she explained looking at him for some kind of understanding.

“It’s not daft Rose, not at all. When you were out of it the energy was in control.”

“Do you remember anything else?” the Doctor asked gently.

“Not at the moment cuz I’m still a bit scrambled but I’m sure I’ll remember more.”

“Course you will! You’re brilliant Rose.” The Doctor handed over headache tablets and carried on. “Here Rose, these will help and I’ll try to fill you in on what happened.”

Summarizing, the Doctor focused on key events. Rose didn’t need all the details right away given her circumstances. Besides, he wanted to be sure she remembered on her own so he could be sure her mind had not been damaged. But he felt he had to tell her of his blunders assuming one entity and then the business with the red lady. Being the person she was, she shrugged, passing it all off as mistakes anyone would make.

“So, how’d ya get the silver stuff outta my mind?” Rose asked.

The Doctor started to twitch, leaping up to pour more tea and offer biscuits.

Bingo, Rose thought watching him move around in a blur. That man was always running, but what was he running from she wondered. 

“Come, sit down Doctor,” she said, “whatever you had to do, you were trying to save me. It’ll be alright.”

He sat like a man facing his execution but to his credit he knew he had to face the music. 

“I had to enter your mind Rose, that’s how I knew it was Silvertyne energy. And I had to protect you from it with my mental shields because the energy was crushing your mind.” He stopped, looking for her reaction. She wasn’t upset yet and for a brief moment he contemplated implying that was the full story. When his pause went on too long he got a prompt.

“Why would you think I’d object to that Doctor? Rose asked quietly. “What aren’t you telling me. Am I going to die Doctor?”

Feeling like a cad, he hastened to reassure her, “No, no Rose you’re not going to die. You were in danger of quite literally losing your mind but from all my scans you’ll recover and be back to normal in a couple of days.”

“Okay then, good,” Rose replied with considerable relief, “so I guess that takes me back to my first question. Why’d ya think I’d object to you protectin’ my mind?”

He could see she was through with his games so he resigned himself to what was to come. “I had to permanently connect with your mind in order to save you Rose. There’s no undoing a Time Lord bond once in place.” 

She watched his whole demeanor slump in defeat, even the light in his eyes went out and Rose began to really worry. He’d told her what he’d been trying to hide but it wasn’t all that was bothering him.

“So, Time Lords make these bonds to save other people’s minds?” she asked.

Oh he was squirming now and he seemed almost embarrassed. 

Oh bloody hell the Doctor thought, nothing wrong with her brain AND why was she always asking the right questions? His thoughts were interrupted by her hands taking his.

“Doctor, whatever it is we’ll figure it out. I believe you that you had to act and had no choice. It’ll take getting used to but we’ll manage yeah? Just trust me okay?”

But he didn’t acknowledge her request. “Rose, for Time Lords, a bond is a permanent, as in cannot be changed, equivalent of a marriage!”.

“Oh,” she said softly, feeling crushed, “so you did this to save me and now you’re stuck with me.”

“What? No, Rose. Don’t you see? I wove myself into your psyche and I cannot change it now and I did it without your permission. It’s mental rape! It’s the highest crime of my people!”

“But Doctor you did it to save me!”

“Yes I did Rose but if I had been doing my duty, paying attention, if I hadn’t made so many wrong assumptions, it wouldn’t have been necessary to tie you to me without your permission. I bollocksed this whole thing. I could have lost you Rose.”

Putting aside the sickening feeling she had that his real fear was being permanently attached to her, she knew she had to get him sorted before she’d ever get to the heart of the matter.

Rose was familiar with his characteristic of taking the blame for everything that went wrong. He saved the day so many times yet when things went off the rails he saw it as his fault. He was pale and truly upset.

“Doctor, you were doing your duty and you were paying attention. You’d spent four days working on the TARDIS! You do that to make sure our home can protect us and take us where we need to be!” Rose reasoned. 

“And on top of that, nobody expects to have a storage locker attack them in their own home, the one place where you’re supposed to be safe! Yet, despite being where you’re most at ease, you found a way to beat the attackers, and may I remind you, within 36 hours!

She leaned towards him being sure he would understand she was serious. “And I get that it’s against all your instincts to enter someone’s mind without permission but you went so far as to get Mum’s permission in an effort to do the right thing. The point is that you did everything you could to respect your society’s rule. You did what you had to do to save me. I don’t blame you,” Rose implored, knowing his agitation was quite real. 

She knew she needed him to put things in proper perspective or he’d disappear into the ship and she might lose him for days. She needed to understand what this bond meant for them and she worried he might not be able to accept it. 

“I didn’t ask Jackie’s permission to permanently bond with you Rose,” he said morosely. 

Hoping that if she explained there was another way to look at things he might feel easier she offered, “Well, at least you asked Mum for permission to enter my mind. That was probably the limit of what she could take anyway and when you asked her permission you didn’t know you’d have to bond with me to save me.”

“You don’t sound upset Rose,” the Doctor stated, clearly puzzled, but it did not help his inner turmoil.

“I’m not upset. I’m glad to be alive if I’m honest and I don’t blame you!”

“Are you going to leave me Rose?” he asked intently.

“Not as far as I know but I think it depends on you Doctor. Why don’t you tell me about these bonds first. You say they’re what Time Lords do as part of marriage. Can you tell me why? 

Noting she hadn’t answered his question, he squirmed replying, “Do I have to Rose?”

Realizing she’d have to approach the topic cautiously, she decided to start small, “Well I can probably guess at a few things first and then you can let me know if I’m right yeah? For instance if you were permanently bonded with a Time Lady, you’d be able to talk to each other in your minds cuz you’d be telepathic and connected mind to mind, yeah?”

Her reticent Time Lord nodded and added, “Yep, through time and space.”

“Well, I imagine that would come in handy,” Rose mused. “So, ...probably you might even know, bein’ connected ‘n all, what your partner was feeling maybe? Happy, sad, scared, you’d know and that would help you share and comfort them, right?” 

Rose was fishing trying to figure out what questions to ask so she could figure out what his problem was and why he was reluctant to explain. As she observed him fidgeting and clearing his throat, she knew she was on to something so she waited for him to respond knowing he would be looking for diversions. It was gonna be like pulling teeth and sure enough the seconds ticked by.

“Yep,” he finally conceded but Rose noticed he didn’t pop the ‘p’. 

Finally the penny dropped and Rose stared at him in shock. “Oh my gawd, if I was gettin’ myself off you’d know, you’d feel it!”

Rose wrenched her hand from his, standing suddenly, not sure what to do with herself. “How’s that supposed to work?” Her voice was panicky as she observed, “You don’t go for that kinda stuff or if you do, not with me. See, the thing is, humans need that kind of ....well, that kind of release. Ideally with someone they care about and someone who cares about them, so, so, by saving me with this bond thing, you’ve sentenced yourself to hell in a way!” She was near tears. “Say something Doctor! What are we gonna do? What do you feel about this?”  
Finally he looked up at her, his eyes reflecting his dread that he was looking at the beginning of the end of Rose being with him. She’d just confirmed that she thought he didn’t ‘go for that kinda stuff’ and made it clear, ‘not with me’. He was troubled and sad. He grabbed for his last straw, “My only hope is that you would stay with me.”

Taking him in, she was in shock. Finally she said, “Doctor, if you have ever considered me a loyal companion, a good friend, I need you to answer me honestly, please Doctor.”

He stood as if signaling how seriously he was taking her request. “I swear Rose, I will answer honestly.”

“I need to know if any part of you regrets this bond because it forever binds you to me.”


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They finally figure it out! Hope you enjoyed my story.

The Doctor knew he had to tell the whole truth and he suspected if Rose thought he wasn’t he’d lose her trust. If he told her how he felt and what he wanted she may not stay but at least he would have told her the truth and, even if she didn’t want him, maybe she would stay.

“Rose, a bond is made with a chosen partner, someone you can share your deepest thoughts and feelings with and know they accept you as you are. It provides those who are bonded together with an enduring and consuming passion.”

Rose knew he was leveling with her as gently as he could, as honestly as he could. He didn’t want to hurt her but he was telling her she could never be that for him. She felt like she’d been punched in the gut. Even though her heart was hurting in her chest, she kept listening because she needed to decide if there was still a life for her here with him.

The Doctor was intent on being honest, choosing his words carefully, not to evade or obscure but to reveal his true feelings, the truth he was so afraid of admitting. 

“I never expected to bond with anyone Rose because you can’t hide from a bond, you’re totally exposed. When you’re crippled inside, like me, how could you ask someone to bond with you?” 

Rose was following his every word with intense concentration. Did he not want this bond with her because he felt unworthy or was he just letting her down gently? 

Still standing he drew himself up to his full height, his hands clasped behind his back. Rose perceived this was his way of giving his words weight, words that were important to him, admissions that were coming from his most private self and she held her breathe waiting for the worst. 

“You are my favorite place to go to when my mind searches for peace,” he said earnestly, his eyes searching hers.

Wait! What does that mean Rose wondered? Where was he going with this now? Emotions shifted in his dark eyes, in his body language, and in the inflections in his voice. Every word he spoke had gravity and finality and she knew his words would forever define their future together or apart. The weight of it was heavier than the energy that had almost crushed her mind.

“The truth is, Rose Tyler, you will have my whole hearts for all my lives. Simply put, I want to wake up with you beside me in the mornings. I want to fall asleep with you in my arms. My desire is that you would want to find release with me. If it’s not what you want, I hope you would still want to stay with me. This is the honest truth!” 

Tension drained out of the Time Lord as his secret was finally revealed. His legs felt like rubber and he contemplated sitting back down before they gave out on him. His fate was in her hands now and come what may, he couldn’t take it back. She might find him disgusting for wanting her that way but she hadn’t minded holding his hand and hugging him so maybe she would at least stay.

Seconds ticked by and he held his breath until he found her eyes and saw her stunned expression. Oh this is not good, not good at all. He was always alert to all her micro expressions and he watched mesmerized as her shock morphed into, no, it couldn’t be, but she looked happy. But happy for what option? He was good at defining expressions but not so good at interpreting them. 

Before he could consider the matter further, Rose exploded into his arms, a bundle of blonde hair and hugging arms, and soft lips against his neck. What? What? His hearts were spinning! She wasn’t crying and this was her happy behavior. 

With a mouth full of her hair he whispered, “Is it a good thing Rose, the way I feel, I mean?” He closed his eyes in pleasure at the feel of their arms around each other.

“It’s a very good thing Doctor,” she laughed. “Cuz I feel the same way about you, you daft alien! And you know what Doctor? Loving someone is the best feeling because when you’re in trouble or in a bad place you just talk to them, and they say, “It will be alright. I’m right here beside you!”

He was shocked on so many levels he was momentarily overwhelmed. The principle reason for his shock was not so much her declaration that she felt the same way he did, although he had to admit that was beyond his wildest hopes, rather it was the powerful waves of excitement and joy flooding his mind all coming from her. He wasn’t reading her through his bond. This was coming from her. Was this how she’d left the phone message? How was that even possible?

He was a Time Lord. He was equipped with a brain that could do multiple higher level reasoning tasks at the same time! Yet, once again, his entire brain was laser focused on Rose Tyler to the exclusion of all else. But he decided to hell with it and lived in the moment. Closing his eyes, he tightened his embrace around her and allowed himself to just feel happy. Rose Tyler loved him! 

In his own way he had loved all his companions but Rose was the only one he had wanted as his mate. He wanted her so badly he was prepared to pay the painful price when she died in the blink of an eye, considering her human life span. He wanted her right now but he didn’t think it was very romantic to just carry her to his chambers. In fact he wasn’t quite sure how to go about enticing her there. He knew exactly what to do when he got her there but what did he say to get her there? Rose was running her fingers through his hair and he sighed, gently setting her feet back on the floor.

“Doctor, can we be together now? I don’t want to waste any more time.”

“Brilliant Rose, you always have the best ideas!” He sighed in relief as once again Rose made it easy for him.   
They walked hand in hand down the corridor towards his bedroom. Rose looked at him shyly from time to time and noticed his demeanor had changed. His eyes blazed when he looked at her and he was confident in himself once more.

The Doctor knew the art of seduction having employed it many times before to achieve his goals. Of course all those times were better labeled the art of deception because he’d never followed through after getting his targets hot and bothered. They’d all been intended as distractions from whatever he was up to at the time. In fact, there were a frightful number of women across time and space that would enjoy running him through if only for the sake of their wounded pride. But Rose was different. He wanted to seduce her, to give her his undivided attention, to stoke her desire and have her come to him for release.

He stopped walking and she turned to him with a questioning look in her eyes. Bending down he nuzzled in close to her left ear, his breath lightly tickling as he whispered, “I’ve wanted you for so long Rose. I have imagined your softness next to me in the night and I’ve touched you in intimate places.” His tongue flicked around her ear and he felt her shiver and move closer.

“Do you think of me that way Rose?” he asked, his voice a soft honey purr as his finger brushed a particular spot behind her ear and he smiled as her hips moved subtly closer to his.

“I, I ... thought of you when I was...touching myself,” she breathily confessed.

Pulling her closer he heard her breath hitch as she felt his hardness. “And did you cum thinking of me Rose?”

“Always,” she confirmed, breathing shallowly at his closeness and the realization he had moved her against the corridor wall with one leg between hers. He took her hands in his and pulled them up above her head. 

Nuzzling into her he licked her neck drifting down to the rounded mounds of her breasts pushing aside her top with his nose so she could feel the gentle caress of his breaths against her skin. He felt her gently rocking against his thigh.

Enjoying the stimulation she softly called his name. 

“Hmmm?” he responded.

“You always smell so good. I want to breathe you in and touch you all over, please,” Rose whispered.

“Oh yes, Rose. Touching is very good, so good. I’m hungry to taste you!” 

Then he kissed her. Rose had never, ever been kissed like he was kissing her. It was all encompassing. His body pressed against her and she felt him stimulating her with his erection and his total possession of her. His tongue and taste were so erotic that her scalp was tingling and it ran down her spine in shivers driving her arousal to new heights. They were devouring each other and it was good, so good and they wanted each other so much. 

Somehow her heady arousal barreled into his mind as her hand wrenched free from his and snaked down between them, stroking his impressive hardness through his trousers. She felt him tremble. Watching his eyes close and hearing his chest rumble in a slow, rolling growl of pleasure, she ran her thumb over the sensitive broad head of his length until he forced himself to step back.

Her half lidded gaze took in the tousle-haired, panting Time Lord. Gawd he was gorgeous she thought, taking in his black eyes and his surprise as he tried to regain control.

The Doctor felt her blistering heat even a step away and he couldn’t deny he was on fire for her and he’d only just kissed her. It was time. He had to have her now. Taking her hand he leaned over and opened the door to his chambers conveniently moved by his ship to provide easy access.

“Jump,” he ordered as he lifted her and she locked her legs around his slim hips grinding herself against him, delighting in his erotic groan.

“Off, off!” she commanded fisting his shirt in her hands ripping it apart sending buttons flying. Finally his flesh was bared to her and she brushed her cheeks over his chest, breathing him in and stopping to lick his nipples until she found herself placed on a giant bed. Crying out against the separation she clamored up to a sitting position ripping off her tee then unbuckling her belt and shimmying her jeans down over her hips, toeing off her trainers and kicking them and her jeans to the floor.

Taking in her Time Lord standing there she was treated to the sexiest sight she’d ever seen. There he stood his hands tightened into fists reflecting the tension in his form, his chest visible where she’d ripped his shirt open, his tie tangling haphazard pointing directly to a massive erection that jutted proudly from where he’d unbuttoned his trousers, presumably to ease the uncomfortable pressure from his clothes. His heated stare met her eyes then travelled down her body and she saw intent and hunger gleaming in his black eyes.

Never conventional he ordered, “Take off your knickers Rose. I want to see you, all of you.”

Quickly complying she slipped them off and her bra and tossed them into the dark. With her knees drawn up, she spread her legs and thrilled at the guttural moan from his throat. In a heartbeat she felt his glorious tongue lapping at her pulsing heat and she cried out her pleasure. Using his arms as leverage to hold her hips from their rhythmic, primitive movement, he devoured her, stimulating her stiff erect bud, delighting in her sighs and moans of pleasure. It really didn’t take long before her breath hitched and her strangled cry and shivering body rippled with her climax.

Immensely pleased he’d made her cum, the Doctor stood, and took her in as he quickly undressed. She was so beautiful, sprawled in completion, her pouty pink lips parted and her half lidded gaze burning. 

She drank him in, hungry all over to feel his beautiful form against her, his length driving into her. She couldn’t ever remember such hunger before. It felt like desperation just to feel him, his hands, his body. It was a driving pulse.

He seemed to sense this as he effortlessly repositioned her. He kissed her thoroughly despite his urgent need which manifested in lean cords of muscle sinew in his arms and chest. Eager for him she signaled her impatience encouraging him with an open thigh and he positioned himself between her legs. She felt him sigh when she wrapped her legs around him. Somehow she knew he thought of her and his position between her legs as his place and his alone. Rose knew it was true. She would never be with anyone else. 

Pulled from her realizations by his urgent whisper she heard his request.

“Please Rose, can I open my bond with you, please.”

She could feel him holding back and she knew he was struggling to overcome his instincts for her sake.

“Doctor, I would never keep you away from me in anyway.”

Rose cried out as his powerful thrust filled her, driving her into the plush mattress. He was claiming her, making sure she knew she was his. 

“Are you sure Rose?” he groaned, struggling to maintain his control as Rose clenched around him. It was such an acute sensation and pure ecstasy for him.

“Doctor,” she panted, “you don’t need to deny your nature. I want you as you are. You never have to ask permission.”

Rose felt him surrender in relief and he flooded her mind and thrust into her all at once. Instinctively her mind and body reached out to him knowing how long he had suffered, deprived of what he needed to be whole. She so desperately wanted to give him what only his kind could. She loved him and she never thought he was crippled inside, just in pain with no relief, yet he managed to do so much for so many. If only she could be what he needed.

He groaned, his whole body locked into a muscled seizure of some kind. She heard him cry out but she knew it was relief, relief from his long drought. He kissed her and thrust deeply and this time Rose gasped. She was climbing towards orgasm with him, feeling what he felt. Then she heard him.

“Rose, you’re in my mind, my brilliant Rose! Please Rose can I bond you to me!” he panted and she felt his desperate hope.

“Yes, yes, do it Doctor. It’s what I want!” she panted.

Then he lifted her legs over his shoulders, bent her in two and drove into her to the hilt as he knit her consciousness to him. When it was done Rose was overcome as she was flooded with his sensations. She clung to him trying to adjust to the onslaught of sensations from them both. She cried out for him, dizzy at the feedback loop in her brain. But he was sure and true and told her how perfect she was, how beautiful and how much he loved her. Rose sighed and gave herself over to the feel of her Time Lord in all the right places.

In the aftermath of their explosive release, as she lay boneless and panting, she gazed at her blissed-out Doctor, his eyes closed as he recovered. Rose understood why the mind connection was so important to him and how keenly he’d felt the black hole in his mind. For him it was like he’d had to live without sight. And now, she wondered why she’d been so worried about it. She could feel a new calm from him and it reassured her, made her feel happy. She knew he loved her in a monumental way. ‘Course it didn’t hurt at all that he bloody well knew how to shag! Gawd he was amazin’!

Suddenly he turned to her. “Rose, I asked you to bond with me when we were close to...er, close to...”

“Climax?” Rose asked cheekily.

“Yes, and that was hardly fair, I should have asked under more, sober circumstances. Do you regret it?” he asked with trepidation.  
“Hmmm, let me think, since you can’t undo it now,” she said with a twinkle in her eye, “if you sense me regretting it, my suggestion would be to shag me straight away Time Lord and I’ll probably forgive you,” she laughed, immediately launching a tickle attack. 

Filled with delight he eventually disengaged, raced from the bed to dig in his trouser pockets. So intent on finding what he was looking for he was unaware of Rose’s admiring gaze taking in his naked form. He returned with a beautiful ring which he solemnly put on her finger. 

“Rose, I want to respect Earth custom too. Will you marry me?” Rose started to cry as she threw her arms around him and he knew he had made her happy.

“Doctor, how d’ya suppose I got in your mind. I mean I’m not a telepath as far as I know!”

“I can’t be sure without tests but I think it has something to do with you taking in the vortex and my TARDIS. I’ll find out but to be honest, right now, I really don’t care. I’m just grateful!” 

But suddenly her mood changed to one of acute alarm. “Oh my gawd, with all that’s happened and now that we’re getting married I’ve just remembered Mum. Doctor, she’s gonna be worried sick waiting for us to call! She doesn’t know I’m better!” 

As she turned to scramble off the bed, the Doctor grabbed her hand. “Rose, we’re in a time machine! I’ll take us back in time and your Mum will hear from us within an hour of when I hung up from my call, same for the Time Lord minds in the pyramid. I’ve worked out a solution for them too.”

Pulling her to his chest he whispered, “We’re not leaving this bed for several days at least!”

“‘Kay,” she purred, “let’s make up for time lost!”


End file.
